Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971

There are spot shortages of powder and primers though I could easily restock today from online retailers. I was at Paul Miller’s range in Colorado last weekend and bought some bullets from him (Colorado Cast Bullets). His storeroom was well stocked with bullets. He can supply you if needed. Regarding Winchester AAs - you can buy these for $7.87 a box at WalMart and get a $2/box rebate through the end of July. I quit reloading low recoil loads for my wife since I can buy them inexpensively. I suggest you just focus on reloading BP shotgun shells. APP is a good sub though I use 777 for metallic cartridges.

Dillon 650 Users Manual I could not have set up my case feeder without the user's manual. Uniquetek has some useful enhancements for 650s you should check out. I find the stop switches handy when setting up my press and clearing malfunctions. Keep the Rockcrusher. It's handy for odd jobs and loading small lots of ammo.

It was nice meeting you, Big Sage. Too bad your shoulder was not ready for the match. Heal up soon because there is plenty of cowboy shooting and elk hunting in your future.

I use Pro Ears, electronic muffs that I can wear under a hat. When working as a TO I need to clearly hear a squib. When counting I like to listen to the hits.

Everyone traveling to the Revenge: monitor the road reports for closures. According to local news "Colorado State Hwy. 160 is closed between Mancos and Hesperus, as well as La Plata County" due to the East Canyon Fire.

Sidebar on slides: check the position of the slide every time at the loading table. They have a way of slipping out of position.

See NRA article. With gunfire erupting at a protest in ABQ last night I predict long lines at local gun stores as fearful citizens get armed.

I'll be there Thursday too. I'm staying in town.

I'll see you there. Let's talk about elk hunting in the Southwest.

Buy online with pickup in the store. You may not see any on the shelf.

They have been on sale there too. I picked up 1,000 Federal small pistol magnums yesterday I paid $23 for.

Locally its 8% RH. My evaporative cooler is working really well. Late summer when the monsoon is in progress the cooler doesn't work so well. I have an Indian reservation between me and a crime-plagued city. The Indians are a great buffer between me and crime - love my neighbors!

Those STS shells are close to my cost of reloading after the rebate ($5/box). I can always use a good supply of once-fired STS hulls too. I'm hoping to score five three cases tomorrow.

It all depends on how green you want it. Dripping wet with moss growing everywhere - western Oregon or Washington will fit the bill. If you just want mostly green with some sunny days any of the mountain states have some suitable locations. Southwest Colorado has a high elevation plateau used for dry land farming of beans. Its mostly green. I'm going to the Revenge in Montrose next week. It's in a huge green valley surrounded by the San Juan mountains. Good shooting range and far from the population centers on the Eastern Slope. However, gun laws are getting worse in Colorado. I suggest you start vacationing in the mountainous western states and attend some of the bigger SASS matches. You will find a place that calls you. The mountain west is very different than eastern and plains states. There are huge differences in climate due to elevation. There are even some locations in Arizona or New Mexico that may be green enough. The Mimbres Valley where the New Mexico state match will be held this year is a pretty, mostly green valley. Arizona's Mogollon Rim is green and forested. I like the towns of Payson and Show Low.

If you come across any Alliant Sport Pistol, give it a try with plastic coated bullets (coated with that great coating you sell us). It is formulated for compatibility with the coating. I find it burns clean and meters great. I will switch to it for all my smokeless handgun loads after I use up my stocks of older powders. BTW I like the imported powders Hodgdon rebrands and sells here.

If you are willing to tolerate thread drift, would you please provide whatever information you have regarding the import restrictions?

Brands are not too important. You need to find a bullet weight that shoots to point-of-aim from your revolvers. You also need a cartridge overall length that feeds well in your rifle and a bullet shape (truncated cone or round nose flat point) that feeds smoothly into the rifle chamber. Once you buy your firearms perhaps another shooter will let you try some ammo to see how it works. BTW, once you start loading you can settle on a round that works well in both your rifle and revolvers.

When you test the Rossi, work the lever vigorously. The action might feed rounds reliably when worked slowly but not quickly.

PL, I shoot some of the modern action shooting sports that GJ mentioned. You can shoot a 1911 in both IDPA and WB. There have been some good deals recently on entry-level 1911s. If you are interested in improving defensive skills I'd try IDPA. It emphasizes shooting from behind cover and shooting while moving. In many scenarios you can make up a bad shot without penalty. BTW, a pump shotgun like used in WB is an incredible self-defense weapon when loaded with buckshot.

You may need to replace the nipples on the Navy cap gun with aftermarket nipples. The stock nipples often have dimensional problems that make them unreliable. Also, have a plan for loading on a rainy day. It doesn't take much water in the wrong places to make them unreliable.

They have an ejector that is legal. With practice one can bounce empty hulls off the TO.

Cabelas still advertises 30-30 lever action rifles for CAS even though they are not legal in a main match. I've also heard gun store clerks spout nonsense about SASS costuming requirements. (These are the same yokels who believe they are ready for the Top Shot television series.)

I love Trail Boss in a 30-30. I use the maximum load published by Hodgdon. I found gas checked bullets improved accuracy.

Trail Boss is a good powder that prevents double-charging a case. However, there are powder check dies one can install on a progressive press that prevent loading an overcharged or undercharged case. I use an RCBS lock-out-die. Loading uncoated bullets leads to a slow buildup of lead shavings and bullet lube in seating dies. Coated bullets prevent this. I don't care how dirty my guns get. They get cleaned after every day of shooting and always function through six stages. BTW, I prefer softer lead bullets to hard cast bullets. We get some backsplatter off of steel targets and soft lead bullets minimize backsplatter. Many CAS shooters keep some standard velocity loads with them for knockdown targets. These are not needed for other targets and most shoot lighter loads. Use enough powder so you have some felt recoil and your loads are reliable in cold weather.

First, Berrys (as I understand their business) supplies plated bullets. CAS requires lead only bullets (coated is OK). 125 grain bullets are a popular choice. Since you know how to load, buy a progressive press, I agree with AW, drive to Dillon in Scottsdale and check out the Square Deal, 550 and 650 presses. Price their cast lead bullets too. Try to find a local caster in your area so you can obtain bullets without shipping. Some out-of-area casters will deliver to Winter Range without charge. Evil Roy has a set of DVDs that show you how to train. Sportsmans Warehouse is selling primers at a good discount right now. Buy all the Federals you can while prices are low. There are many powders that will work well. If you have a powder left over from loading 45 ACPs it will probably work. Search this Wire for threads listing pet loads.